QA Testing for Software Development

Software testing is the Quality Assurance (QA) process software is subjected to for making sure that all its functions, as well as the structural components, are error-free and its resultant performance is as expected according to its design.

Why software development test is necessary

After you have completed writing the code for a program, a software development test is a must before it is released for use in full swing due to the following reasons:

Quality: If the software is developed to be sold, then from the customer-care point of view, testing is necessary to ensure the product’s quality. The seller is obliged to satisfy the user’s expectation of value for the money they spend on the software.

Security: A silly error in the software can cause huge losses for the user, especially if the user is a large organization with an extensive presence and uses the software in a vast network. There have been many examples of such problems in recent history.

Financial considerations: It is necessary to make the software error-free to protect the commercial interests of all investors and stakeholders, as any undesirable outcome can affect them severely.

Types of QA testing for software

There are various QA testing types for software based on the approach of the tests. Two most common methods are:

Passive Vs Active testing: In Passive testing, only general inspection of the software is done by putting it to public use and inspecting the system logs while in Active testing, additional work is done such as providing specific input data to observe the corresponding functional behavior.

Black box Vs White box testing: Black box testing is the concept of testing the program from the periphery, i.e., by trying the functions as a user does it and observing if it is all working fine, without any checking of the program’s coding structure. In White box testing, the internal structure of the program is also tested. It needs more expertise than for the Black box test. Currently, a hybrid method of Grey box testing is also in practice.

Different methods of software tests

Based on various factors, there are multiple QA testing methods applied in software development. Some of them are:

Compatibility testing: As the name suggests, the software is tested for compatibility with all applications and operating systems as well as functional environments with which it is expected to interact. It is an important test in software development to which a program or product is usually subjected.

Alpha testing: After developing the software, testing is done at the developer’s site itself by potential customers or a dedicated testing team.

Beta testing: After all the tests are done, and bugs are fixed at the developer’s site, the software is released to a group of public users with the label ‘beta’ to use as if they would do with a finished product. It is done to detect any further error if present which may be experienced by the public users. It is mostly an online QA testing method as the user can access the product online for testing and provide feedback.

Security testing: This test, as the name suggests, is done to ensure the program is secure with no loopholes for hackers to infiltrate into confidential and vulnerable data.

In addition to the above, many other QA testing methods are also employed in a software development setup.

It is clear that hardly any developer can be negligent in the matter of software development test as the consequences could be disastrous. Software QA testing is an integral part of software development as the final product reaching the end-user must be flawless.